


SBSS: Episode 1.

by EchoPaulens



Series: SBSS [2]
Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Pirate, Beta is cancelled we die now, Boatswain! Wooyoung, Captain! Hongjoong, Church boy! San, Cursed ass! Yeosang, Fantasy, Lieutenant! Seonghwa, M/M, MVP! Jongho, Murder, No braincels in sight only gay pirates, Pirates, Say my name era looks, Soldier! Yunho, Song! Mingi, Swearing, Violence, Worldbuilding gone too far, be gay do crimes, criminals, nsfw jokes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-18
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-12 03:15:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,360
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28503588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EchoPaulens/pseuds/EchoPaulens
Summary: The pirate crew of the Aurora grew bigger and stronger, gaining more members and even a name; Ateez.Their journey just started but things won't be easy for them. The captain's goal is Ciarmyr, a fairytale he will prove true, but what about the rest of the crew? Everyone lost something, but the most important part is how much they have to find.It's time for their adventure to keep going.
Relationships: Choi Jongho/Kang Yeosang, Choi San/Jung Wooyoung, Jeong Yunho/Song Mingi, Kim Hongjoong/Park Seonghwa
Series: SBSS [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1797166
Comments: 12
Kudos: 54





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome back! From now on this story won't have a beta revision so sorry about typos or dumb grammar mistakes.
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

The sun raised over the horizon, filling everything with warm colors and light. A new day started in Old Sanlow, the only habitable place on the small island it was located.

The town almost covered every inch of the land, and it wasn't actually a huge one. Tiny island, tiny town, tiny port… A lot of ships docked in Old Sanlow, usually sailors looking for supplies or men to get on their ship. It wasn’t weird to see all kinds of travelers taking a small rest there either.

Even pirates were welcome.

Numerous ships of all kinds had no fear of showing their black flack and jolly roger in the island, but one of them was especially striking.

A black and orange flag with a name written in green.

_ Ateez _ .

The Aurora arrived to Old Sanlow not so long ago but no one in the place seemed to care. It was good news for the most experienced members of the crew, but for others it was a giant disappointment.

"Where's the creepy laugh? What about the fog of terror invading everyone’s hearts?" 

The prince's words practically evaporated between the hustle and bustle of the town, no one seemed to pay attention to it. Except for San, of course. 

The two boys were crossing a huge market that seemed to invade the whole town, looking for food and some clothes they could need. The people in Old Sanlow didn’t seem to give a shit about anything, they were just trying to make a living without paying attention to soldiers, pirates or princes with horns and red eyes.

"Shouldn't you be happy? You can have a normal day for once."

"Don't get me wrong, I'm enjoying this." Yeosang replied. "But it's not what I expected from some feared pirates."

"Maybe they’re just chilling, you know."

After saying that San suddenly stopped moving, making a clueless Yeosang collide with him.

"What are you–"

"Look." 

The church boy signaled something, but Yeosang didn’t know well what it was. There were a lot of things happening around them and San was pointing at a random market stall.

What was it? The posters on it? No, it didn't look like their faces were there. The animals it was selling? Those chickens seemed nice, perhaps the church boy wanted one. Or was it the lady irritating the stall owner?

"What am I looking at?"

The answer Yeosang got was a strong pull on his arm, San made him fastly move to hide behind some boxes and bags.

The prince took another look, trying to find something they should hide from. The irritating lady was a good option, but she wasn't scary enough.

Then he noticed something weird.

Between all the mess and people from Old Sanlow there was a boy who looked like an outsider. He seemed calm and polite despite the noise around him, a true gentleman.

A uniformed gentleman.

Was he a soldier? He was wearing no jacket, but the trousers and boots were too similar to the White Army uniform.

"I've seen this guy before, I'm sure." San muttered, his gaze fixed on the guy too like he was trying to remember.

"We should tell the captain."

Without even asking, Yeosang started to move. It caused some panic in the church boy, making him nervously rush to his crewmate’s side to hold his arm like he didn’t want to lose him. The suspicious guy didn’t even notice them, he was just buying some stuff, doing his job.

Yeosang easily moved between the people like he was used to it; something he actually wasn’t, but his will to avoid human interaction was stronger. San followed, apologizing to some people the prince pushed without even noticing, making sure no one would scream at them and make them drag more attention.

“Hey you, the monster!”

Someone suddenly shouted, attracting Yeosang’s gaze and clearly offending him. It was obviously about him, there weren't any more non-humans close to them. The one who called was a stocky guy from a market stall, he was smiling at the prince like he did nothing wrong.

At first he was gonna ignore it and keep moving, but Yeosang ended up approaching him. He was curious, upset but curious.

“What are you doing?!” San let out in a high pitched tone, alarmed. “We should hurry!”

“Maybe we can get some food on our way to the ship, don’t you think?”

“What?”

Why did he suddenly want to keep shopping? What if the soldier saw them and they got arrested? What if they  _ died _ . San’s mind was telling him to leave Yeosang behind and alert the captain, but on the other hand he didn’t want to be alone on a weird island with soldiers and probably other pirate crews.

The church boy took a deep breath and followed his mate.

* * *

“Why are they taking so long?” The captain started to worry about the newbies, they had an easy task and should already be back. “What if something happened to them? I was the one to tell them to go on their own, oh gods.”

“Relax captain, they will be fine.” Wooyoung laughed a bit. “They have some claws and– Uh… Their creences? What does San have with him?”

“Some strong kicks it seems.” Mingi added. “Do they teach you that in the church?”

The two guys were sitting on the wooden floor of the deck, waiting for their crewmates to finish their tasks so they could leave the island. At first they were reluctant to stand each other, but it didn’t take long until they got used to the other’s company.

“Should we give him a weapon? Do we have anything for him?” Wooyoung looked around him like he was gonna find any random sword on the deck, something that obviously didn’t happen. “He should learn something that doesn’t include his legs, don’t ya think?”

“I don’t think we can buy any weapons now, we barely had gold to get some food here.” Mingi muttered.

“HEY, JONGHO.”

“Holy fucking shit Wooyoung–” The captain sputtered after the sudden screams.

“YEAH?” The blacksmith voice sounded from inside the ship, probably from the crew cabin. “WHAT DO YOU WANT?”

“CAN YOU MAKE A WEAPON FOR THE CHURCH BOY?!” 

Mingi laughed while the captain’s eardrums suffered. There was a moment of silence before the youngest replied.

“DO I LOOK LIKE I CAN GET A WEAPON OUT OF MY ASS? I NEED A FORGE!”

“FOR THE GODS SHUT UP–” Seonghwa added, his voice coming from the captain’s cabin. “JUST GIVE HIM THE SOLDIER’S SWORD AND LET ME WORK.”

Oh, right. The soldier's sword.

Hongjoong and Wooyoung suddenly looked at Mingi, who didn't know well how to react. They absolutely forgot they had Yunho's sword with them, but it felt wrong to use it.

"A sword from the White Army." The captain muttered. "Not my favorites but they are..."

"Expensive. The word is expensive." The silver haired finished. "We could just sell it and buy a cheaper one, but it will take time.”

"What if it's, uh–" Hongjoong made some weird gestures, trying to find the way to explain himself. "You know. The guy's possessed, perhaps the sword's too."

"I don't think that's how it works, Captain."

"If I'm right you'll have to handle a possessed church boy. How bad can it be?"

"Uh–" Wooyoung lost his words. There was so much about San he didn’t understand, he was kinda afraid of his skills. "Should we ask the soldier or something?"

"What if he lies?"

"I'll know." Mingi finally spoke on the matter. "I know when he's lying, but I can assure you the sword Is not possessed."

He explained it and let some seconds pass, expecting some kind of answer from his crewmates. But the answer didn’t arrive, they were just staring at him.

"But you'll make me ask him anyways." He said while getting to his feet. "Fine, fine. I'll do it. He might be bored."

The tallest one of the pirates took a deep breath before moving, then proceeding to go down the wooden stairs of the Aurora. 

The soldier, Yunho.

The idea of having a member of the White Army among the crew wasn't the most charming idea for Hongjoong, but some part of his mind was sure he had to take the soldier with them. It was a strange emotion, the same he felt when he saw Yeosang on the palace, the same he felt when he found Mingi on the Landfill. His guts felt like he had to give Mingi what he needed, perhaps he was the one who should decide Yunho's fate.

Yes, that was it. It felt  _ wrong  _ to let him die in stranger hands, he was Mingi's business.

Perhaps the mysterious captain from Future Island felt it too; it felt too easy to convince them, the soldier had all their secrets and they let Ateez take him. They even helped them build a small jail inside the Aurora, gods.

It surely wasn't what Yunho expected when Mingi asked him to join them, but no one else in the crew wanted the soldier just– walking around them like nothing happened.

It was better to have an innocent prisoner than an enemy free on the Aurora.

The captain just stared while Mingi walked away, like he was expecting something to happen. He needed something to happen, something to think about until Yeosang and San were back.

Perhaps he should help Seonghwa, the lieutenant was planning some possible courses for them to follow. They really had no clue about their next stop, Ateez had to find some before getting back to work. 

Ciarmyr. The mysterious place was their goal, but the captain didn’t really explain it to the new members of the crew. He would when they had a chance to eat together, like– all of them.

Hongjoong took a deep breath and stared into Wooyoung’s tired expression, he was about to head to his cabin when the boatswain’s expression suddenly changed.

“What–” He muttered, trying to figure out what it meant. “Surprise? Is it a good one? A bad one?”

“Just turn around!.” Wooyoung replied, actually standing up to turn the captain around with his own hands.

They were back. Yeosang and San were back and carrying a lot with them; the prince held some vegetables and fruits on his arms, using his big black jacket as a bag, while San had a huge cloth sack on his back.

“What the hell?” Hongjoong couldn’t hold a reaction, actually filled with joy.

It was a good surprise.

“Where did you get all of this? Did you rob it?” Wooyoung added.

“No!” San instantly replied. “Why would we rob it?!”

“‘Cause you barely had gold? This is too much, only an idiot would believe you paid for it.” The boatswain laughed, helping the church boy with the huge bag. “Oh, also because you’re a pirate now.”

“That doesn’t mean I’ll steal from the innocent.”

“How do you know they’re innocent?”

“Well–”

“You can’t know! All you know is you need to eat.”

They kept arguing in a comical high pitched voice for a while, but Hongjoong wasn’t even paying attention to them. All he heard was an irritating whistle on his ear.

After deliberately ignoring San and Wooyoung he narrowed his eyes and approached the prince.

“Will you explain how you got all of this?” He said while taking some of the vegetables from the other’s arms. “We could just– I won’t die if you don’t, but I’m actually curious.”

"Oh, I got them for free!" Yeosang said, his voice full of excitement. "A guy in the market gave it to me, he seemed a dick at first but–"

"What– Free?" Hongjoong didn’t want to break the prince's joy, but it felt kinda sketchy. "What did you do? Did you threaten him or something?"

"No! Why would I?" Then he stopped talking for a second. "Well, he called me a monster at first, but he was kinda nice when I approached."

Oh.

"He was curious! It's the first time someone wanted to see the monster but like– in a good way, you know?" Then he laughed a bit, the usual Yeosang  _ hehet _ sound. "Everyone treated me well and they gave me food! Yay!"

So the guy used him to attract people, to gain more customers, more money. It was pretty obvious to Hongjoong but he couldn’t say it, the prince seemed so happy about it. Perhaps he felt accepted for the first time, he didn’t have to hide himself and gained some free food.

That was good for him, even if it was a lie. 

Places like Old Sanlow were used to non-human travelers, but most of their people still saw them as terrible monsters. They just got used to taking advantage of them.

The captain sighed, a guy from a market stall was so much better than– Who knows? Slavers or traffickers. At least Yeosang was happy and not dead 'cause someone wanted to sell his horns.

"That's nice!" Hongjoong finally said. "See? You're not that bad, you deserve kindness and joy too."

He saw a chance to help him and he wouldn't let it go.

"Come on, let’s get this inside and leave this place. We have pirate stuff to do."

"Oh, oh. Creepy laugh?"

The captain took a look at the food he carried. Yeo said he got it for free but the gold was gone. Someone robbed it or they bought something else, it didn't matter.

They were out of money.

"Yeah, creepy laugh." The captain took a deep breath then, a signal for the prince to expect some shouting from him. “OKAY CREW, WE’RE MOVING! I WANT EVERY MEMBER OF ATEEZ WORKING IN A MINUTE!”

“SURE!” “AYE CAPTAIN!” “ON IT!”

Everyone seemed to reply at the moment like they just dropped anything they were doing, except for Yeosang. He just stared at the captain while carrying the food to the pantry, thinking about what he said.  _ Every member of Ateez.  _ And the prince was indeed one of them.

It felt so weird to think about how everything changed for him in some months, back in Ethia’s palace he thought about the Aurora pirates like some rough dirty dudes he would never have to face. And yet, there he was.

And the weirdest thing about it was how the Aurora felt more like home than the palace.

“Are you even listening to me–” The captain tried to get the prince’s attention. “Yeosang!”

“Hah?” He finally reacted and looked around. He unconsciously kept walking and they were already in the ship’s pantry, Yeosang immediately left the food on its place when he was dragged out of his inner thoughts. “Ah, sorry Captain. Thinking about stuff, you know.”

“Uh, yeah, stuff. I feel ya’.” Hongjoong laughed softly, then took something from the baskets around them and threw it to Yeosang. An apple. “C’mon, eat something, it’s time to work.”

* * *

“Shouldn’t you be up there? Your captain called.” Yunho’s tired voice muttered, expecting the one at the other side of the bars to listen.

“Our captain, Yunho.” Mingi replied.

The pirate’s arm was extended between the bars of the tiny jail, expecting the soldier to hand him something. They too had a good talk about how the other’s thought his sword was possessed, Yunho laughed and Mingi sighed numerous times. They were just having some decent conversation when the topic appeared.  _ How can we make them trust you? _

Yunho didn’t think there was a way, but Mingi was really trying. And during his incredible scheming he noticed a huge problem.

“Just give me the damn jacket, Yunho!” He asked once again. “I won’t take your pants but at least get rid of that.”

“But I’m attached to it! It’s  _ my _ jacket!”

“It’s the White Army uniform! How are they supposed to trust someone dressed in the White Army uniform?!”

The pirate moved his hand like he signaled for the other to give him the jacket, but the soldier just shook his head. Mingi was about to complain again, but then a big wave crashed against the Aurora and made both of them grab the nearest iron bars to avoid falling.

“MINGI, FORGET THE FUCKING SWORD, WE NEED YOU.” Wooyoung’s shrill voice came from the deck.

“IS HE STILL ASKING FOR THE SWORD? ARE YOU GUYS STUPID?” Jongho shouted too like he wanted Mingi to hear it.

“Told ya’.” Yunho said.

The pirate stared into his friend’s eyes for a moment, but the other only held his jacket closer. It wouldn’t work, there was no way to make him leave the uniform. Perhaps he should get him other clothes first.

Mingi finally stood up and signaled to his own eyes, then at Yunho’s.

“I’ll be back.” He said in a threatening tone.

“I’ll be waiting.” Yunho replied in a calm one.

The pirate didn’t say anything else before obeying and going to the deck. Everyone in the crew was there, something weird since usually some of them got to rest during navigation. It didn’t take long until he understood why.

The waves around them were aggressive, the sea was unpredictable and the sky was clear. The water was acting like there was a huge and fucked up storm, but there were no clouds or rain. Just– the sun and a beautiful blue sky.

“What the hell does this mean?” He asked as soon as he noticed, it definitely wasn’t a natural thing.

Mingi rushed to help too since, well, he was a part of the crew and he didn’t want to die– But it didn’t take too long until something else caught his attention. There was something on the water, moving and crashing against the waves.

No.

There was someone.

“THERE’S A MAN ADRIFT!”

“WHAT–” “HE MIGHT ALREADY BE DEAD.” “SHUT UP GUYS, LET’S GET HIM ON THE SHIP” “HAH?”

Confusion invaded the Aurora for some time, but there was one thing clear. 

If the mysterious guy was still alive, Ateez wouldn’t be the ones letting him drown.


	2. Chapter 2

"Is he alive?" Jongho asked.

“I don’t know. I hope he is.” Yeosang replied.

They were watching the scene from afar, sitting on the wooden floor of the Aurora’s deck. Ateez managed to save the man they found in the middle of the sea, the waves should have drowned him in no time so the pirates probably appeared in the best moment. Even if the crew had to get out of the terrible weather first, San managed to take care of the stranger and put him to rest in the captain’s cabin.

The church boy turned to have some first aid knowledge, he probably was the one who saved his life.

As soon as the sea calmed down with the night, Wooyoung approached to take care of the stranger too, taking him from Hongjoong’s cabin to the deck again. San was sitting on the floor, putting the young man’s head on his legs so he was comfortable.

“He doesn’t look like a rough sailor.” San muttered, carefully brushing the stranger’s hair out of his face so the boatswain could take a better look at him. “I don’t think he’s much older than the lieutenant.”

“He sure has a story to tell.”

The silver haired approached his hand to the stranger’s face too, caressly touching some scars on his face. Those were big scars, not just accidents from common life. Wooyoung was trying to guess what kind of guy they rescued when he suddenly opened his eyes and stared back at him. 

Silence invaded the scene as none of them said anything, but San and Wooyoung were surely thinking the same.

He had red eyes. Not as spooky and glowy as Yeosang, but still red. It was when he looked up at the church boy when the boatswain realized.

He had red eyes too, but way darker than the others.

What the fuck. How didn’t he notice before?

What did it mean?

Wooyoung decided to ignore San’s creepiness once more, he probably was born with them and ended up in jail for it, yeah. That was it. It explained why people thought he was possessed.

But what about the stranger? He was awake and staring at Wooyoung, probably as confused as him.

“Uh…” He finally spoke, looking around him. “This is not my ship.”

Oh shit he was expecting an answer. Wooyoung stared at San, who was completely blocked and confused. It would be his work to explain what happened.

“HEY, YEO!” He shouted, but it didn’t seem to affect the stranger. “BRING SOME FOOD FOR HIM, HE MIGHT BE HUNGRY!”

The prince nodded and stood up, the boatswain heard the sudden rushed steps and took it as the reply he was expecting. Then smiled at the stranger, a cute and kind smile San didn’t expect.

The church boy only saw the feared pirate side of the silver haired, the sudden kindness kinda hit him hard.

“We found you adrift, it looks like you fell from your ship sir.” He moved a bit without getting up, giving more space for the stranger to move. “This boy here saved your life.”

He signaled at San then, making the stranger realize he was resting his head on him. The guy fastly moved to sit down, not without some noises of pain in the process. He was obviously hurt.

His gaze fell on the church boy, who gathered all his energy to calm down and speak.

“I– I just did what I felt correct.” He took a more comfortable posture as soon as the stranger moved. “No one deserves to die on the sea like that.”

“I guess I owe you some gratitude.” The stranger's voice suddenly turned deeper, he was being serious. “If you saved my life I should return the favor.”

“Oh! No, please– No need!” San nervously moved his hands.

“Hah! He wants to thank you! It would be rude if you don’t let him!” Wooyoung laughed.

“But I don’t need anything!”

“Then let him think of something!”

“Why do you want him to–”

“Wasn’t it Mingi who spotted him? He saved his life too.” Yeosang suddenly joined.

The prince managed to scare the shit out of Wooyoung and San, none of them noticed him arriving with the food. They screamed in a high pitched noise that surely confused some dolphins around the Aurora, Yeosang didn’t react to it and the stranger couldn’t help but laugh a bit.

“You guys are funny, I like that.” The guy reached out for the food Yeo offered to him, taking a bite to the first fruit his hand found. After some seconds he spoke again. “You can call me Soonyoung, hah.”

“I’m San!” The church boy replied.

“You can call me Woo–”

“Ah!” The prince interrupted. “Give me a moment, I need to speak to our boatswain!”

He didn’t even ask before taking Wooyoung by the jacket and basically dragged him to where Jongho was, then Yeo sat down too.

“What’s up, welcome back.” The blacksmith muttered. “Anything wrong?”

“I don’t think we should tell him our names, Wooyoung.”

“You just told him Mingi found him.” The silver haired said while turning around to form a circle with the other two boys.

“That was before I used my brain, you know–” Yeosang stared at the guy and San for a moment, then back at the ones with him. “He kinda reacted to it, don’t you think?”

“He just told us his name!” The silver haired said, confused. “What’s he gonna do with our names? Call us? Oh my god, how scary.”

“I’m an escaped prince! And you’re pirates! There’s a price for our heads!”

“Why don’t you ask him?”

Jongho’s words managed to get the attention of the other two guys, who were confused as hell. Was he stupid? Why would any kind of bounty hunter just tell his plans to some pirates? How was that supposed to work? Jongho didn’t see any problem on his plan, was he an idiot?

“You know what–” The boatswain stood up, a smile on his face. “I’ll do it.”

“You’ll do WHAT.” Yeosang stood up too. “Are you stupid too?!”

“Hey! What do you mean?!” Jongho shouted, offended.

“I’ll just ask him nicely!” The silver haired said while approaching San and the stranger. “Hey Soonyoung!”

“STOP IT.” Yeosang managed to shout. “You can’t just do that!”

“Do what?” Mingi, who was just working around them, asked. “What the hell are you guys doing? You’ll scare the guy we just rescued.”

“Mingi! Stop him! He wants to–”

“Hey! Are you a bounty hunter?!” Woayoung finally asked in a cheerful tone. “Do you want to kill us and get some money for it?”

Oh. That’s what he wanted to do, Mingi thought.

Everyone in the scene froze like time just stopped, even if it was obvious that the other wouldn't just confess if he was an enemy. Every single one of them was staring at the silver haired, wondering if joining Ateez was a good idea at all.

Everyone except Jongho, of course, the idea was his own. 

Seconds passed and no one said anything, Soonyoung seemed to be thinking about a proper answer. Now that was a bit suspicious, was he thinking of a way to get out alive if he was discovered? A good lie to avoid exposing his intentions?

“Oh no. I’m no bounty hunter, but killing pirates for money is kinda my job.”

Eh. _Eh?_

The guy started laughing after dropping such a bomb of information, watching the confusion in the pirates eyes.

“Come on, what am I supposed to do? I’m an unarmed single soldier in a pirate ship!”

How was he so calm? Why did he feel so safe? Wooyoung just asked as a joke and didn’t expect the fucking dumbass to sincerely reply. He looked at San, who was the one closest to Soonyoung. Hm. Perhaps Soonyoung wasn’t his real name, but why would he give them a fake one and then expose himself like that?

“Maybe– Maybe he’s just a poor guy doing his job. A low range soldier–” Mingi tried to save the situation. “Right?”

“Song Mingi.” Soonyoung said. “You’re a kind one, right? That’s what I heard.”

“Why does everyone know me? Why does every single random guy know my name?” The pirate sounded tired rather than surprised.

“Oh I know more than your name! And you’re wrong, I am not a low rank soldier.” 

He was an absolute dumbass, he just wanted to die. The boatswain moved his hand to the whip he carried with him, getting ready in case the soldier made any weird move. Yeosang followed and drew his sword.

“Should we kill him? Do we take him with–”

“Not yet.” The boatswain’s voice was suddenly filled with seriousness. The captain and Seonghwa were still working, they needed to know what happened before the other was dead. “Why did you tell us?”

“I may be a soldier, but I’m not a liar.” He pouted. “Also– I wanted to confirm who you are, Jung Wooyoung.”

_Oh shit._

Yeosang didn’t let him say his name, the other already knew the crew before everything happened. Who was he? Did they face him before?

“I heard a lot about you! And I’m not talking about your criminal record.” He signaled at the rest, making it clear that he _knew_ their criminal records. “You’re Seungkwan’s friend, aren’t you?”

* * *

The Aurora finally anchored next to a small islet, the members of the crew reunited on the deck to talk about the current situation. They had not one, but two soldiers on their ship. Everyone had questions to make, but the biggest one was about the last thing Soonyoung said.

As soon as he asked Wooyoung if that guy was his friend the boatswain ordered to imprison him. The silver haired sounded pretty proud of his friends some time ago, what changed since then? Was there anything he didn’t want the rest to know?

Didn’t he mention a soldier friend back then?

“So we saved a rat and now Yunho has company.” Jongho explained. “But he said he’s a high rank soldier, we should think well about our next steps.”

“Killing him would make the White Army chase our ass even more.” Seonghwa said. “Asking for a rescue could lead us to a trap.”

“Again.” Yeosang added.

“What do we do?” Mingi asked, his voice full of worry and his gaze fixed on the boatswain. “What do you want to do? I’m sure you have something in mind.”

“...” Wooyoung just stared at the wooden floor, his thoughts were somewhere else. He really seemed worried. 

“Wooyoung?” The lieutenant softly said, carefully putting one hand in the boatswain’s shoulder. “Are you okay?”

“The guy said something about him, he asked if he was someone’s friend.” Mingi explained to the captain, who seemed confused as hell. “He definitely knows more than his criminal record.”

“But he looked so friendly…” San pouted, crossing his arms. “I don’t think he’ll hurt us.”

“He’s a soldier and we are pirates, San. It’s his job.” Hongjoong said, then took a deep breath. “We will follow the course and decide what to do on the way. San, Jongho and Yeosang will help me with the navigation.”

“Yes captain.” “Sure.” “I’ll do my best.”

“The other three will guard the prisoners, take turns and make sure our new guest doesn’t escape.”

“He’s unarmed and cooperative, that won’t be a problem.” Mingi replied, but he wasn’t the best one to say it. He was the one who escaped from more prisons after all.

“Good, don’t disappoint me then.” Joong said and made a gesture with the hand, signaling for everyone to move. It was time to work.

Every member of Ateez got to their jobs, getting ready to pick up the anchor and keep moving. The captain stood still, thinking about the decisions he just made. Having the less experienced ones helping him would make things harder, but they needed to learn fast. Also, he really needed the other three to guard the soldiers.

Yunho wasn’t a menace, but if the new one didn’t lie they couldn’t let him escape.

Maybe Wooyoung could get more information about his friend and clear up his mind, too.

He also had some questions about him, about what kind of soldier he was and how did he end up aboard the Aurora. A high rank soldier shouldn’t fall from his ship so easily, there surely happened something to throw him into the furious sea. Hongjoong would speak to the new prisoner as soon as they were safe and not in the middle of nothing, he would get some answers for sure.

But not yet, he had a rudder to guide first.

“Let’s see what they learned.”

He muttered to himself, thinking about the ones who would be helping. It was time to see them work on their own.

* * *

_Wooyoung. Hey, sweetie, are you listening to me?_

The sweet voice of the woman felt like a caress for him, like an old sweet melody he really missed.

_We need some help there, it’s time to wake up._

It sounded ruder then, like she was getting really tired. The silver haired wanted to react, he wanted to open his eyes and see her. Gods how he missed her.

_Wooyoung! Wake the fuck up! There are soldiers nearby and I don’t want them to reach you!_

And just like that the voice went silent, the dream ended and Wooyoung was awake. He suddenly opened his eyes, he was in the crew’s cabin. In the Aurora. In the present.

The dream felt sweet and comforting while he was asleep, but it turned into a nightmare as soon as he got up. She was gone. Wooyoung took a deep breath, he needed to calm down and focus on what was happening. He had to focus on Ateez.

He moved a bit, wanting to get up. It was then when he realized someone put his jacket on him while he was sleeping, like it was a blanket.

Did the dream make him tremble? Was it that bad?

He took it and got out of the hammock, realizing then what happened.

There was someone else, the lieutenant was sitting on the floor next to him, asleep. It seemed like he was the one who covered him with the jacket, so Wooyoung returned the favor and covered him with it. He couldn’t hold back a discrete smile before getting out of the cabin and going to the Aurora’s cellar, where the prison was.

Mingi fastly noticed him and waved with one hand, he didn’t actually seem tired or bored.

“You’re finally awake!” He said, happy to see him well. “I was worried!”

“Didn’t you hate me for, uh– Tying you to a palm tree so the army got you?”

“Yeah! But I kinda understand why you did it!”

“That was quite fun, actually.” Yunho said from the jail.

“I’m not talking to you, soldier.” Wooyoung’s words suddenly sharpened.

“Woah, what’s with this attitude?” The other soldier, Soonyoung, joined.

“Why are they so happy? Did you play cards together or something?” The boatswain joked, but then he saw the fucking cards next to Mingi.

“I lost.” The pirate said. “I hate this game.”

“You’re supposed to watch them, not entertain them.” Wooyoung said, sitting next to Mingi. “They’re prisoners, Mingi. Prisoners.”

“I mean, he has a point here.” Yunho said. “And I’m good at games, you didn’t have a chance.”

“What does _good at games_ mean? Can someone be good at every game?” Soonyoung asked, full of curiosity.

“I’m just good at winning.”

“That makes no sense at all.”

Wooyoung wasn’t even fully awake and he was already tired. He usually loved some funny guys making fun of other funny guys, but he wasn’t having a good time. He still felt like he was trapped in the damn dream, he was kinda cold.

Cold.

Then he realized something.

He was feeling cold but Mingi seemed to be hot, he wasn’t wearing his long jacket nor his gloves. Why was he–

Oh.

That’s why they were playing.

Once he took a better look he understood, they were gambling. Wooyoung heard something about wanting Yunho’s jacket gone, but it seemed like the soldiers got everything from him. They stopped playing before he had to take out his pants, the boatswain guessed.

It felt kinda ridiculous to see Yunho with Mingi’s gloves on top of his own, but the other guy with the pirate’s enormous jacket was even funnier.

“Should I try to get it back? I’m good at this game.” Wooyoung muttered, laughing a bit. He was starting to feel actually awake.

“No need.” Yunho replied instead of Mingi. “You’re not wearing the cool fluffy jacket, there’s nothing I want from you.”

“Your jacket is cool tho.” The other soldier said. “I like it, I want one too.”

At first they were about to laugh, but all of them realized at the same time. He should have one too, he _had to_. It was the fucking uniform. Mingi and Wooyoung didn’t know what to think, perhaps he lied after all, but Yunho’s idea was different.

There could only be one reason for a soldier like him to want his jacket, his own was different. It felt stupid if you didn’t know how the white army worked, but it has a real meaning. The standard uniform was white with blue details, but some units of the army had a different color instead of blue. For example, the monster assassins had a white and purple uniform. It wasn’t easy to notice, the White Army wanted everyone to know they were soldiers.

Except for one unit.

“I really want a white one, ah…” He kept explaining. “Black is cool, but it makes you feel out of the whole thing.”

Black.

_Black._

_Holy shit._

“How–” Yunho started to mutter, his body completely paralized. “What was your name?”

“Oh? You forgot? My name is Soonyoung!” Then he laughed, realizing what the other was thinking. “But the army usually calls me Hoshi.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> /Hongjoong voice/ It's the police!
> 
> Hope you enjoyed the chapter! I'm slowly getting back to the schedule, that's nice!!  
> Oh boi do you hear that? Is the sound of backstories approaching.
> 
> See you in the next chapter!


	3. Chapter 3

"Hoshi…?"

At first the pirates were just confused, but Yunho’s voice managed to make some fear grow on them. The soldier wasn’t just scared, he was  _ terrorized  _ by the name he heard, he was almost trembling _.  _ Mingi and Wooyoung looked at each other, they didn’t even know what to ask. Should they even ask?

"Oh, you know who I am? Cool!" Soonyoung said in a cheerful tone. The guy just turned Yunho into a frightened mess, but he seemed so happy.

"You– Of course I know." Yunho gulped and gave himself a moment of silence. To the pirates, it seemed like he was thinking about what he was allowed to say. "You're the leader of the Specialists combat unit."

"Wait– Wait!" The silver haired interrupted, breaking the dense atmosphere around them. "The Specialists? I thought they were a lie to scare pirates."

"Now that’s what I'm used to." Soonyoung replied, clearly disappointed. "How can you be the friend of a specialist and think we don't exist?"

"He's– Is he a specialist...?" 

But despite asking, the silver haired wasn’t ready for an answer yet. He directed his gaze to the floor, going silent like he needed a moment to assimilate what was happening. The soldiers noticed and remained in silence too, making the scene even more uncomfortable for everyone but Soonyoung.

For Wooyoung every second in silence felt like an eternity, pure and burning anguish growing inside of him. But he didn’t know what to say, he didn’t know how to break the spell of the moment. Luckily for him, his crewmate was there to help.

"What the fuck are the Specialists?!" Mingi finally spoke. "Why do you guys wear a  _ black  _ uniform if you're from the  _ White  _ Army?! It doesn’t make sense!"

He was so fucking confused. Why did Yunho know about them? Why wasn’t he warned? He knew the soldier for so long, they both shared some fucked up and deep secrets. Why didn’t he tell him about the weird as shit soldiers with black uniforms?

Now that he got to think about it, hadn’t he seen a black uniform before?

"That's the thing." Yunho started to explain after some seconds, once again measuring his words. "The army doesn’t want people to think of them as soldiers–"

"I am beyond offended right now." Soonyoung added.

"They’re expert fighters and an excellent team, but–" The other kept explaining. "They're an absolute chaos. Practically uncontrollable."

"I wouldn’t put it that way. We are in control, but we don't fully obey the Army." Soonyoung took a moment to stare into the pirates eyes. "We obey our captain first, those rude uniformed guys last."

"You are exterminators. You destroy your targets without any mercy.” Then he chuckled. It was an awkward laugh, probably to release some tension from his body. “Even the soldiers fear you. The Specialists are monsters.”

“We are soldiers like you. We are humans.” Soonyoung paused for a moment. “Most of us. I’m pretty sure Hansol– I mean Vernon! I think Vernon is a human too, but I still have to make sure. “

“Wait, wait.” Mingi finally understood. “Vernon? Isn’t that how the ugly monster was called?”

“Oh, you met Vernon Junior! Isn’t he cute?”

“That bastard is gross.”

“EVERYONE SHUT THE FUCK UP.”

The boatswain’s shrill voice pierced everyone’s ears and earned some silence once again, but he wasn’t tense or confused then. He was serious, his gaze fixed on Soonyoung’s red eyes. God, those eyes were weird, but he just said he was a human. How could that be? The thoughts invaded Wooyoung’s mind, for a moment it made him forget what he wanted to say. The soldier already said he wasn’t a liar, were there really humans with bright bloody eyes?

Was he cursed too? No, he didn’t seem like it, there wasn’t anything else on him to indicate that.

Focus, Wooyoung.

The pirate took a deep breath, knowing well he had everyone’s attention on him. Then he finally spoke again.

"You didn’t answer me. Is Seungkwan with the Specialists?"

* * *

"Wooyoung, wake up!"

Hm? What was that? Wooyoung’s mind was immersed in a confusing dream, his body felt like it didn’t want to respond. But she was calling him. She wanted him to wake up.

His eyelids felt heavy, his arms and legs hurt like he just had the roughest battle of his life. Something in his head was telling him to stay asleep, something on his guts told him it wasn’t worth it.

But  _ she _ was calling.

_ Come on, Wooyoung, you have to open your eyes _ . He thought, but his body kept still in the place. Right, even if his eyes remained closed he could try something else. Where was he? What did he feel around him? He was lying on some kind of solid and uncomfortable surface, it surely wasn’t his bed. It felt like stone.

What about the sounds? There wasn’t any special sound around him, rather one was missing. The sea, the waves crashing against the ship, the crew working around him. There was no water moving, only silence.

Oh shit. Where the hell was he?

“What…” He started to mutter, finally slowly opening his eyes. “What happened?”

The boy’s soft voice rumbled in the place, making him aware he definitely wasn’t out in the sea. He sat down and rubbed his eyes with one hand, taking then a moment to look around him. Stone. He was in a room made of stone, sitting on the ground. He was confused as hell, but then he turned around and saw the bars that replaced the fourth wall of the room.

A prison. He was in prison.

The young pirate had many questions, but the most important of the answers was right in front of him.

At the other side of the jail’s corridor, in the cell right in front of Wooyoung’s, a strong woman was staring at him. She seemed hurt, clearly fought an intense battle before ending up there, but overall she was worried. Worried about the silver haired in front of her.

“Mom– I mean… Captain!”

“Oh sweetie, thank the gods you’re alright.”

The woman sighed in relief as soon as her son got up and grabbed the iron bars, as soon as she made sure he wasn’t hurt. But even if he wasn’t physically hurt, Wooyoung was confused. What about the rest of the crew? Why was it only the two of them? Why the fuck were they in jail? For the gods sake, they had a place to come back to. Everyone in the crew had a home they wanted to go back someday, jail wasn’t an option.

Their crew wasn’t just a group of shameless pirates, it was a crew made of women who united to survive. Well, mostly. Wooyoung was the only man on board, the son of the captain.

The boy knew every single one of the ladies, their problems, burdens, hopes and dreams. Most of them had a family somewhere, even him and the captain.

The silver haired looked around him, looking for any kind of way out. There wasn’t more than a locked door and a tiny window through the stone wall, Wooyoung didn’t have many options to find an escape route.

“Wooyoung, there’s no way out.” She said in an unexpectedly calm tone of voice.

But he didn’t care. The young pirate approached the tiny window to see where the prison was, or at least he tried. It was too high for him, what kind of giant built the place? He jumped a few times until his hands reached the edge of the window, then he managed to get himself up to watch through it.

He expected a city, at least a small town guarded by some insufferable soldiers, but that wasn’t it. Everything he saw was a small camp inside a forest, there weren’t many soldiers on it. The window was at ground level, they probably were underground. That made things even harder.

“You’ll get hurt like an idiot, Wooyoung. Just calm down.” She spoke again.

“We can’t die here!” He replied, still trying to see something else out there. But the thing was, there  _ wasn’t _ anything else. It was probably a rough jail they used to keep prisoners before moving them to actual big ass jails. “There’s got to be a ship out there. Even if it’s not our ship, we can steal one from the army and–”

“Wooyoung.  _ Enough _ .”

Then the woman’s voice sounded different, hitting the boy like a hard blow. Those were orders from his captain. He let himself fall to the floor again, taking a deep breath before walking towards her and sitting right in front of the bars. There were metters between them, the iron bars made it impossible for them to get closer or touch each other. God how Wooyoung hated it, he really wanted to reach out to her.

“Listen to me, kid.” She started to say, her voice softening once again. “Whatever happens next, I don’t want you to look back. I want you to keep going and survive.”

“What– What are you talking about? We’ll make it out of here, I’ll find a way.”

“I know you will,” The woman smiled then, it was a warm smile but there was something hiding behind it. Sadness. “you always do.”

A chill ran through Wooyoung’s body when he heard his mother’s voice, there was something really wrong. 

“Mom– There’s something else, right? What’s happening here...?”

“I couldn’t be more proud of you, Wooyoung.” She was definitely thinking about something else, the young pirate could feel it. The captain was staring at her son like she was looking at her whole world.

And she  _ was _ looking at her whole world, actually. Her tender look focused on Wooyoung and nothing else than Wooyoung, the woman felt the strong heat on her chest, both love and distress at the same time. Even if her son didn’t know what was about to happen, the captain felt like she was losing him forever. It was a goodbye for her.

“I can’t wait to see everything you’ll achieve,” She passed his arm between the iron bars, like she was trying to reach her son. “you’ll be someone great.”

“You mean everything  _ we _ will achieve.” The boy did the same, with much more effort and energy than the lady. But even if he stuck his body to the limit of the bars, his hand failed to reach the other’s.

And she laughed.

The conversation kept moving but Wooyoung didn’t get anything else, it seemed like she was really tired from the fight. She probably gave her all in the battle so the boy didn’t get caught, the lady was exhausted but didn’t want him to feel bad about it. She didn’t want him to feel like it was his fault. For a second he thought she gave up, but that didn’t sound like something the captain would do. No, she was a real warrior, the strongest pirate he ever met. She wouldn’t give up that easily.

_ She needs a rest _ , Wooyoung thought.

It didn’t matter if he got the perfect escape plan, she couldn’t follow without some days of rest. But it was okay, they had plenty of time.

That's what he thought.

_Tomorrow I'll tell her that it's okay_ _if I have to wait,_ he thought.

_ Tomorrow we'll think about something,  _ he thought.

He thought about a lot of things that night, but at some point his body gave way and he fell asleep. It was surprising, actually, the jail didn’t have more than some wood he could lie on. If pain and discomfort weren’t enough, his mind was also full of questions and ideas. It felt like he could never get to rest that night.

But he did it, he closed his eyes and time vanished.

He didn’t do anything besides talking and thinking since the last time he woke up, but it felt like he really needed the rest time he gained. Perhaps he didn’t just fall asleep the last time, perhaps someone knocked him unconscious. That would explain the pain, actually.

It was precisely said pain that woke him up. The boy moved while he slept and pressed his side against the wood that worked as a bed, discovering then he had a huge wound there. It wasn’t an open wound, probably just a very hard hit, but oh gods his body tensed the instant it touched the rough surface.

“Aak–” He growled as he woke up, almost letting out some tears from the pain.

He opened his eyes only to see the stone above him. Right, the jail. He had a prison to escape from. 

Wooyoung yawned and stretched his whole body before even getting up, something that made him notice how many wounds his body had. Those guys really knocked him out by force before imprisoning him, huh.

But that wouldn’t hold him back, he had a way out to find.

“Good morning, captain.” He said while sitting down, rubbing his eyes with one hand. Then he finally took a look at the corridor of the jail, at the cell in front of him. 

She wasn’t there.

There was no one behind the bars, his mother was gone. He felt his body freeze, his heart shatter. Where was she? What did they do to her? Why was he alone?

Well, he wasn’t alone at all. There was someone in the corridor, sitting on the floor with his back against the iron bars. He seemed to be sleeping. Wooyoung took a deep breath, trying to calm down without much success. He knew panic wouldn’t be useful, but who was he to control inevitable emotions? His body was trembling, still half paralyzed by the thought of what could have happened to her.

But he had to focus. He did his best to swallow his feelings and approached the guy. He couldn’t reach him, but he could at least try to see him better.

He was young, probably from a similar age than Wooyoung himself. Although he wasn’t wearing the typical jacket from the White Army, the silver haired could recognize those thigh high boots anywhere. The boy had brown hair and his features felt soft and round, but the pirate couldn’t let his guard down.

Why was he sleeping, tho?

“Hey, fucker.” He said, maybe the other was just resting his eyes. He waited for a response, a move, anything. Nothing happened. Wooyoung took a deep breath, filling his lungs all he could before doing what he did better: screaming. “AHOY SOLDIER, WAKE THE FUCK UP–”

“WHAT–” The other instantly reacted, his screams matching Wooyoung’s volume. It could sound stupid, but that was a really high volume.

It seemed like the pirate really scared him. Wooyoung would have laughed if the situation was different, but he was tense. Really tense. The soldier took a look at the pirate, it took him a few seconds to actually remember why he was sleeping on the floor.

“Oh.” He said, standing up then and wiping his uniform with his hands.

“Oh? Wha–” Wooyoung frowned, still expecting an explanation. “What the fuck does _ oh _ mean? Where is she?”

“She’s–” The soldier bit his lower lip like he didn’t know how to say it. He seemed genuinely worried about it, something that felt weird for the pirate. Soldier’s usually didn’t give a shit about a pirate’s feelings, even less about how to say the bad news. “She's gone. Like– Not gone gone, she’s alive!”

Alive.

She was alive.

“She’s just– She has been transferred this morning. It’s just you now.” The brunette was really struggling, gods. He was also gesturing with his hands while he talked, like he wanted to make it easier to understand. Or perhaps it was just a habit from the other. “Well, you and I.”

Now that was something interesting.

“Just you and I?” Wooyoung asked, much more calm than moments before. She was alive, although far from him. He trusted his mother, his captain. She would be alright, at least until the silver haired could find her. “Are you the only guard here?”

“Uh, yeah, now that’s a funny story–” He laughed a bit, clearly uncomfortable. “They don’t know what to do with any of us, so we’ll be here for a long time.”

“Unless I manage to escape.” Wooyoung chuckled like he just cracked a joke. Like he hadn't decided to do so.

“Of course, I do not underestimate your escapism skills.” The other finally showed a little smile. He was probably the most tolerable soldier Wooyoung ever met. “But I’ll do my best to keep you here, it’s a promise.”

“Yeah, I thought so.”

Wooyoung knew well the tranquility he was feeling would end, he knew it was a sudden reaction to a not-mean guy, to someone who slept on the floor just to give him the bad news. He did that for a prisoner, he couldn’t be that bad.

He could hold on to that until the realization came and he started feeling like shit again, when he finally assimilated he was on his own.

Or not at all.

“Hey, soldier,” He said, almost muttering. As soon as the other reacted the pirate took a deep breath, thinking about the time he would pass in the damn jail in the middle of nowhere. “What’s your name?”

“Oh.” He looked surprised, the boy probably didn’t expect a pirate to worry about how to call him. “Seungkwan, Boo Seungkwan.”

* * *

“He’ll of course he’s a Specialist. I already said I am no liar.” Soonyoung said, offended by the boatswain’s question. “He’s from the strategists unit, a funny guy–”

The guy suddenly went silent like he was thinking about something. The rest waited some seconds for him to keep talking, but he didn’t. He just stayed there, staring at the floor. The pirates looked at each other, then at Yunho. No one knew well what happened.

“Is he–” “Did we break him?” “What the fuck.”

They muttered to each other like no one wanted to wake the other up from the spell. At least until Wooyoung heavily sighed, frowning a bit. The new information wasn’t easy to digest. Yunho just said the Specialists were monsters, merciless exterminators. Was Seungkwan really one of them? The idea didn’t work on his mind.

“Mingi, tell the captain about who our new prisoner is.” His voice was suddenly full of seriousness, he actually sounded like the boatswain he was. It was an order. “We have to throw him out as soon as we can, he’s too dangerous.”

“Got it.”

Mingi instantly got up to do as he was told, fastly leaving the place and going to the deck of the Aurora. As soon as he was alone with the prisoners Wooyoung got more comfortable, almost lying down completely. He didn’t have anything to talk with Yunho and Soonyoung was still thinking. About what? No one really knew it, at least until he finally spoke.

“It was him! That fucker threw me overboard!” He seemed really shocked, he had just remembered it. “Again!”

“Seungkwan did it?” Wooyoung asked, somewhat shocked too. “You guys really are weird, hah?”

“ _ Again _ ?” Yunho added.

“Who are you calling weird, Jung Wooyoung?!” Soonyoung ignored Yunho’s comment like it never existed. “I know all your criminal record, you rascal! I could expose your–”

“Wait, wait.” The boatswain interrupted. “You keep talking about that, do you really know what each one of us did?”

“Huh?” He directed his gaze to Yunho for a moment, like he expected some kind of clue about what the other was about to ask. “Yeah. They kinda warned us about you so I did my job and–”

“Every single one of the men on this ship?”

“Except for the prisoner, you mean–” Yunho tried to add.

“Oh, about you too. You’re no innocent soul.” Soonyoung gave himself a moment before looking back at the silver haired. His confusion turned into pure curiosity. “But I don’t think he wants to know about you.” Then a smirk appeared in his face. “I will tell you what you want ‘cause you’re Kwan’s friend, but… Just one person.”

“I don’t need to know more than one.”

Wooyoung moved to properly sit down right in front of the jail, like he wanted to talk to the other face to face.

“Tell me about Choi San.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boi there comes the TEA.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed the chapter! I feel free now that i can actually talk about Woo's backstory, even if it wasn't fully shown yet.
> 
> Anyways, take care of yourselves and see you in the next chapter!


	4. Chapter 4

Pain. A soft but persistent pain invaded the captain, like a headache trying to warn him about something? But, about what? He had no idea. Everything was going okay, their course was giving no trouble and the kids were working well. Hongjoong made sure they were, constantly checking on them in case they needed help or guidance.

The biggest trouble they had appeared when the sun rose, when Yeosang’s claws posed a threat for the ropes.

But it was under control, everything was in place.

Then why did he feel that way? The constant, mental pain was starting to cause an actual headache. He needed to know what was wrong.

_ Okay Hongjoong _ , he thought,  _ what could be wrong? _

He took another look at the ones working around him. 

Yeosang was doing well, he didn’t accidentally stab anyone with his claws yet which was a plus. He got used to the pirate life quite fast, even if it was completely different from the palace.  _ Now he has to get used to himself. _

Jongho was strong and followed orders well, he wasn’t the most experienced sailor but he was of great help. He joked about his home some times, but it didn’t seem like it kept him awake at night.  _ I don't think he’ll open up easily. _

San learned fast, actually. Perhaps they teached him how to navigate in the church, that would make sense. He was probably the one who was having the hardest time, the drastic change of lifestyle hit him like a sharp rock in the guts. Also, they didn’t know well about what happened to him but they knew the church betrayed him. At least that was how he should be feeling.  _ He'll need more time. _

The newbies were adapting themselves the best they could, the problem wasn’t with them.

What about the rest?

Was Seonghwa okay? Perhaps too tired? Did Mingi’s wounds heal well? Was he too nervous because of Yunho? And Wooyoung? It seemed like their new prisoner mentioned something from his past, something the boatswain perhaps wanted to forget.

Should he just go and ask him? At first the captain considered it, but he was no one to get in Wooyoung’s past if he didn’t want him to. If he needed to talk about it he would, Hongjoong knew well. He was perhaps the most communicative one among them, at least among the three that passed more time together.

What was wrong?

_ What was wrong? _

_ What the hell was wrong? _

Frustration invaded Hongjoong as he considered every problem his dear crew could have, trying to find the thought that wouldn’t let him calm down. The biggest issue was about the lieutenant, about the mistakes made weeks ago. The blond didn’t seem to let it go, but his anger really calmed down with time and conversation.

He didn’t really answer Joong’s questions yet, but the captain knew he was no one to demand explanations. Even if it really pissed him off back then, he already knew. It wasn’t like he didn’t trust Seonghwa, tho, he trusted him with his whole heart. But that kinda was the problem, the other probably did some crazy bullshit back then. It made Hongjoong’s blood boil, how the other probably sacrificed something so huge for him and didn’t even talk about it.

But it was fine. It was absolutely fine. Seonghwa was calmer, he listened to his apologies and fucking shot him to death. He was perfectly fine.

Oh.

Perhaps the lieutenant Seonghwa wasn’t the one who needed help.

Perhaps it was him. He needed help.  _ Hongjoong needed help. _ He checked the whole crew and found nothing, nothing he could really assist on. He was worried about the whole crew but forgot to worry about the captain.

Was he okay?

How was he supposed to be?

Joong knew well what he did, what anger made him do. His tantrum almost took the lieutenant’s life, the thought was constantly living on his brain like a parasyte. Even if Seonghwa told him he understood, even if he gave him the prettiest words to tell him he just needed time, even then Hongjoong couldn’t stop the damn thought.

He didn’t think the other was lying, he knew Seonghwa well. It was just– He really didn’t control his mind.

Why?  _ Why? _

Was there something else about the matter? Was there something else he should tell the blond?

Was he asking himself the wrong questions?

Gods he adored him, every part of the blond made him go crazy. For years he stood by his side, hypnotized by every feature of his body and personality, but he didn’t really express it like that.

And of course, he never dared to ask if the other loved him back.

Back there, when they argued about the pact– Holy fuck Joong was out of his fucking mind, he saw it clear when thinking about it, he was so pissed off but– Having him so close… Perhaps the mixed emotions were what caused the worst outcome ever, but it wasn’t the worst thing. 

The worst thing was the other feeling it too.

In the worst fucking moment.

Should he just speak to him? Ask about what happened then? Should he–

“Captain!”

He heard Mingi’s voice in his head, like he was cheering on him.

“CAPTAIN!”

He heard it even louder then. Why did his mind choose Mingi’s voice? Of all the people he knew– Oh. 

It wasn’t inside his mind. 

Hongjoong was lost in his thoughts and almost forgot he was working, like his body didn’t need his mind to keep doing his job.

He finally managed to go back to reality and shaked his head a bit, looking then at the one approaching him. Mingi seemed alarmed, but he was approaching at a slow pace. So it was something important but not urgent, Hongjoong thought.

“Hm?” He focused on him, trying to forget about his inner problems for a moment. “What’s wrong?”

“You see– We have a problem.” The pirate tried to show some good manners to the captain, something that was really weird of him. He didn’t know how to give the news, he didn’t know how the other would react to it. It didn’t work, tho, it was like something inside his head refused to actually respect Hongjoong. “The guy we found, he’s a big deal. Like– A dangerous fucker.”

“He said killing pirates is his job. He’s a soldier. Of course he’s dangerous.” Deep inside the captain expected the other to be exaggerating, but he knew well he wouldn’t be so lucky.

“Yeah, well. He’s like one of the most dangerous ones. A leader from the Specialists, they said something like that.” 

“A lead– What?” Hongjoong frowned for a moment, confused. The Specialists? He didn’t think they were real but they just found one of their leaders adrift. Was that even possible? Could Ateez be that much unlucky? “Okay, we– Gods what the fuck.”

He looked around for a moment. It was only them and the three newbies, he shouldn’t distract them from their job if he wanted it done fast. He needed a plan, a simple plan of leaving the fucker on some random island. He absolutely discarded the negotiation option, it didn’t work well the last time.

Joong needed a moment to take a deep breath, to think about their options.

The island they were going to had some different towns and a particular kind of people, mostly non humans lived there. It wasn’t the first one the Aurora docked on it, they knew well how it worked. But he didn’t know if it was a place for a soldier, he would probably die soon if they left him there. It wasn’t like Hongjoong really cared about the soldier’s life, but he could -and probably would -take someone down with him.

Ateez wouldn’t be the ones to ruin a happy place for lost souls, they would have to wait a bit longer. But that meant the threat would stay with them for more time.

“Alright, I’ll need you to watch for him a bit longer.” He finally said. “You two will take care of the prisoners while we’re docked in our next destination, we’ll go as fast as possible.”

“And we’ll throw him out when we are far enough, I understand–” Then he noticed something. “Two? Only two?”

“I’ll need Seonghwa out there, he knows the place. I don’t think two jailed guys are better than Wooyoung and you.”

“Of course! Of course captain!”

The truth was that Mingi was pretty nervous about it. He was a strong and experienced pirate, he knew about a lot of useful stuff, he always found a path to victory. But the thing was he knew absolutely nothing about the Specialist or Soonyoung– Hoshi, whatever name he used. He had no idea of the soldier’s plans or how strong he was, the only thing he knew was the fear he saw in Yunho's eyes.

“We’ll keep an eye on him all the time. No rest allowed. Best guards ever. We won’t even dare to blink–”

“What are you talking about?” Wooyoung’s voice suddenly ringed behind him. “Who isn’t allowed to rest?”

* * *

He left. He fucking left him alone with Soonyoung.

Yunho wouldn’t include the boatswain on a list of closest friends, but he really felt betrayed when he was left alone with the monster.  _ Monster _ . That’s what the Specialists were, monsters made to fight and destroy. For the gods he was so nervous, so tense. What would the other do? Would he even do anything?

Actually, it didn’t look like it.

He was happily sitting on the wooden floor, enjoying the enormous jacket he took from Mingi. Soonyoung didn’t seem worried, not even a bit. Perhaps he was stupid.

No.

He wouldn’t have made it that far being stupid. He probably had nothing to fear, the guy didn’t see Ateez as a menace. Did he have a plan to escape? Was it a trap from the Specialists? Maybe he threw himself to the water knowing they would rescue him, maybe more fearsome soldiers were surrounding the Aurora while he thought of it.

Oh shit.

What was he supposed to do? Which was Yunho’s side? Both of them had reasons to kick his ass, if a confrontation between both took place he would be screwed.

“Jeong Yunho.”

Soonyoung suddenly spoke, making a chill invade the younger soldier’s body. For a moment he thought the other knew what he was thinking about. The idea fastly disappeared, as fast as the other kept talking.

“You’re a nice guy, I did some research here too.” He was smiling, using a friendly tone. “Shua and the blondie got you into this, am I right?”

Shua? The blondie?

Was he talking about the devil twins? Was he talking about what happened back in Oxpass?

“Ya’ know… The Specialists got you into this mess, we can get you out too. Give you something better if you want.”

He seemed too relaxed to be implying what Yunho thought he was implying.

“Now’s the time for you to choose who your allies are.”

“What do you want me to do?” Yunho finally dared to reply. “What are you asking from me?”

Soonyoung’s eyes opened wide, he didn’t even expect the other to answer. Some seconds of silence passed until he started to laugh, maintaining the same discretion he had while speaking.

“Oh, I ain’t asking anything. I’m just saying–” Then he started to make some gestures with one hand, like he was searching for the right words to say. “If anything happened here you’d have to make a choice, right? It would make me really happy if you chose me.”

“Do I look like a snake to you? I won’t crawl for a saviour.” Even if he wanted to sound bold, Yunho’s words were almost a whisper. “I know where my allies are, Hoshi.”

The specialist just shrugged, getting more comfortable in the huge jacket before closing his eyes. It looked like he wanted to sleep for a while, good news for Yunho. But even then he made sure to mutter some last words.

“We’ll see.”

* * *

“Do you think it’s safe for us?” Yeosang said, his gaze fixed on the island breaking the ocean’s silhouette. “We already have two soldiers on board, if we find bounty hunters–”

“Relax, my lord.” Wooyoung replied after laughing a bit. “I don’t think some random bounty hunter will come to kick our ass, we aren’t that expensive yet.”

“What was that?”

“Uh, facts?”

“I’m not talking about– What the fuck did you call me?”

“My lord?”

“I hate it, thanks.”

“Your highness. Is it better?”

“Hell no.”

“Oh my prince–”

“Stop with that bullshit.”

“A prince should not spew profanities.”

“I do not spew profanities. I enunciate them clearly, like a gent.”

“Woah, woah–” The silver haired suddenly started to laugh, almost hurting the poor Yeosang’s eardrums.

“What the fuck are you two doing?” Jongho suddenly joined the conversation. “Get to work, we’ll dock soon and everything has to be ready.”

“Aye aye, I know.” Wooyoung replied as soon as he got rid of the laughter. “You have to be ready and go fast, but the lucky me will have to stay in the Aurora. How exciting.”

“At least Mingi will be with you.” Another voice joined, it was Seonghwa. The blond had no bad intentions, but the response he received was Wooyoung’s expression changing like he just licked the worst lemon ever. So those two were back on their bullshit. “Come on, you’re getting along well.”

“I don’t wanna hold the candles for his date with the soldier!”

Oh, so that was it. They were  _ not _ back on their bullshit, Seonghwa corrected his thoughts.

“At least you won’t be the only one.” Jongho added, he was the one to laugh then. He actually found it pretty comical. They had an incredibly dangerous prisoner, that was fine. But having to witness a possible romance? The boatswain put his line there. “The other guy will be there too, perhaps you can have a double date.”

“Oh Jongho, you are incredibly funny.” Wooyoung said, absolutely disgusted by the idea. “Funniest person I have ever met.”

“I know, right? I’m just a natural at this.” He really took it as a compliment.

“Yeah, ha ha.” He faked some laughter, then directed his gaze to Yeosang. “I’m out, gonna do my job. You know, I have a ship to protect.”

Yeosang didn’t reply, he just waved at him with a huge smile on his face. He was so happy the blacksmith stopped the nicknames discussion, honestly. His hero.

The boatswain decided to ignore it and do as he said, going to the crew’s cabin first. Seonghwa woke up a while ago and let his jacket there and, to be honest, Wooyoung loved his jacket. Sometimes it wasn’t very functional, one time the wind put it over his head and almost made him fall into the water, but he still loved it. He walked at a fast but relaxed pace, thinking about the fluffy and comfy–

Huh?

There was someone else, someone he didn’t expect. 

San.

Uh oh. He hadn’t seen the church boy since he spoke with Soonyoung, since he asked him about his criminal record. There were things that Wooyoung definitely shouldn’t know, but it alarmed him that San didn’t mention it. Like, Never. He hadn’t been in the crew for long but he had plenty of opportunities to do so.

Should he tease him? Should he look for a way to use the information?

He couldn’t decide before the other turned around and saw him, making a cute and high pitched sound.

“Wooyoung! You scared me!” He said, bringing a hand to his chest like he was catching back his breath. “Why were you there?! I mean, why were you just standing there?!”

“Oh, I just–” The silver haired started to say, but he went silent for no apparent reason. What was it? What stopped him? Well.

It felt different. San felt different when he knew what he did, why the church decided he was possessed.

Perhaps Soonyoung just lied to scare him, he also considered that option, but if it was so it fucking worked. He was scared of Choi San, of the cute church boy who was staring at him right then.

Oh right. He was expecting an answer.

“I just– I wanted my jacket. You know.” Then he laughed a bit, even Wooyoung himself felt how uncomfortable the laugh felt. “It’s cold out there, you should cover yourself too.”

There was another mistake. It was because of his last words that Wooyoung took a look at San, at the little peaks of skin his clothes let others see. It was just his neck and part of his chest, but there were some scars coming out from under the shirt. Fucking scars. Not only one or too, there were a lot of them.

What kind of church boy got so many closed wounds? Perhaps a very clumsy one?

No. That made no sense.

Gods the soldier didn’t lie, right?

“Uhm…” San finally interrupted the boatswain’s thought. He noticed the other staring at him, of course, he felt Wooyoung’s gaze on his chest. He suddenly felt like one of the beautiful ladies that had to deal with dudes staring at– Well. The point was that the church boy’s face was completely red, matching the colorful parts of his peculiar hair. “Wooyoung?”

“Hah?”

“Is… Is everything okay?”

“What–” And just like that Wooyoung realized time existed, instantly panicking. “Oh, yeah! Everything’s fine! I’m okay, you’re okay! Yes!”

“Weren’t you cold...?” San said, taking a look then at the jacket the other held in his hands.

“Cold? I’m,” A mess. He was an absolute mess. Why was a pirate like him so nervous for a church boy? “I’m not anymore!” He said without really thinking about it.

“Aren’t you…?”

“And I was thinking, something I usually avoid– Uh, yeah, you’re the one going outside! You will be cold in the town!” He laughed. He laughed like the fucking idiot he was. “You should take it! It’s really comfy and warm, just give it back when you’re done!”

And just like that he threw the jacket for the other to catch. What a fucking disaster. He didn’t even know what the hell he was doing, but the boatswain decided to move on and leave San on his own before he said anything even worse.

_ For the gods, Wooyoung. _

He thought, tossing his own hair with one hand. 

The soldier really made it, Soonyoung managed to make him tremble at the thought of his words being true. The idea of the innocent church boy being  _ that _ bad– The worst thing was thinking that he was that good with his facade. His lies.

No.

Wooyoung stopped himself there.

The other didn’t lie, he just omitted some information. Perhaps San just wanted to forget about his past and get a new life, perhaps he was actually trying to adapt to the pirate journey. 

If he wanted to write a new chapter of his story, Wooyoung wouldn’t be the one to ruin it for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there, hope you enjoyed the chapter! It looks like the schedule is back in town, that's nice!
> 
> Take care of yourselves and see you in the next chapter!


	5. Chapter 5

The island wasn't bigger than the other ones the Aurora docked in recently, but despite this it felt much more huge for the pirates. Every little town was in a whole different location, they weren’t even close. If anyone wanted to visit their neighbours they had to cross the forest and mountains, let’s not talk about merchants who had to travel with the goods.

But it actually was like that for a reason. The island was the home of magical non-human creatures, a little paradise that somehow the White Army decided to ignore. All kinds of people lived there, most of them trying to live a good life without the fear of being killed. Something similar to the Landfill but for more common people, for families and creatures that were no criminals. They enjoyed and respected the original state of the island, the vegetation and creatures that lived there from the start, so they built different towns without destroying the place.

Even if the army and the church treated it like hell, it was a nice place.

But their respect for nature made Ateez divide themselves in two groups, three counting the ones who stayed in the Aurora. At the end of the day, they were sure each group would have a story to tell about the place.

And there was the first group;  _ the first story. _

Only two of them went to the town at the north of the main port, a village called Bright Lily. The name came from the flowers that grew in the area, white, big and beautiful lilies. They probably used the word  _ bright _ to avoid people relating them to the White Army, something quite sad. White was a pretty color, but the army dyed its pure meaning to bloody red.

Then, the two pirates followed the path lo Bright Lily across the woods. The ones in charge for the job were the Lieutenant Park Seonghwa and the recently recruited Choi San.

They calmly walked, speaking only when necessary. It wasn’t like the blond didn’t want to talk to the other, but the church boy didn't look comfortable with it. He probably saw Seonghwa as a dangerous criminal, a murderer, and it was the first time the two of them were alone. Thinking about it, it made sense.

Because of that the blond remained silent most of the time, expecting the other to talk when he wanted to. Perhaps he wouldn't do it, but Seonghwa was okay with the silence.

Actually, he  _ loved  _ the silence.

But San did not. He hated it, he hated the awkward atmosphere, he hated how fast the blond noticed how nervous he was. The church boy walked some steps behind the other, one hand stroking the soft fluff of the jacket he was wearing.

Wooyoung’s jacket.

The blond noticed too, but none of them dared to ask or give an explanation.

"Careful."

Seonghwa finally spoke again, they had been walking for long without any indication or warning from the oldest. 

His words made San's steps cease, the church boy looked forward to seeing what the other warned him about. It was something that didn't seem to fit in the forest, that was for sure.

Crystals.

Giant, beautiful crystals joined the vegetation, making a pretty scene thanks to the multiple white lilies around them. If San weren’t extremely confused by it, he would say leaving the church to see such places could be worth it. If he had to describe it with one word, it would be  _ magical. _

But Seonghwa warned him for a reason.

"What's wrong?" San muttered like he was already scared of the answer.

"You don’t know what those are?" The blond asked in a soft tone, he didn’t want the other to feel insulted. Seonghwa approached the closest crystal, which was actually bigger than his own height, and looked at it.

Natural surfaces usually showed a distorted image, but the reflection in those crystals was perfect. It almost felt like there was another person in front of him, actually.

"Those are called Crystals of the True Self," he started to explain. "and they can show if a person is possessed by the masked spirits. Some think they connect with the spirits' world."

"Excuse me– What the fuck." San said, slowly approaching the other. But he didn't expose himself to the reflectant part of it. "It's a rock. How is it supposed to–"

"You believe in your religious stories but not in my words?" The blond muttered, caringly touching the surface in front of him. So did his reflection, the image he was supposed to identify himself in. It felt like an eternity passed in silence, San didn’t dare to talk back. "I understand you don't see me as a good person, but I have no reason to lie."

"It's what pirates do."

San took a deep breath before approaching even more, standing right by the other in front of the crystal. His chest burned, filled with the fear of his reflection showing something he didn’t know, fearing the ones who accused him of being possessed could be right.

Fearing the masked spirits would show.

But it didn’t happen.

Despite everything, it was just him.

"Then it's your turn to start lying, sweetie."

Seonghwa muttered and started moving again, they were close to the town and had no time to lose. But the lieutenant didn’t walk more than a few steps before noticing the other wasn’t following.

San was still standing in front of the crystal, in front of the perfect reflection of himself.

He was not possessed, but he did become something different. The face he saw in front of him was then the one of a pirate, a sea robber, a cruel and heartless criminal– No.

Even if those were the words he was teached to believe, something inside of him thought differently. There was a feeling he didn’t know how to explain, a voice telling him he was in the right place.

"It's a weird feeling looking into a mirror and not knowing who the other is, right?"

Seonghwa’s voice managed to catch San's attention. It sounded gentle, caring.

"You made a decision that changed who you are now, what your life will be like–" He kept talking, offering the other a warm smile. The blond sounded like he really knew what he was talking about. "The only way you can go is forward. The person you were back then– In the church, in Oxpass… He's gone, there’s no turning back."

Then the lieutenant, once again, started walking and expected the other to follow. But giving his back to San didn’t mean he was done speaking.

"You feel lost, it's normal."

"What am I supposed to do…?" The church boy voice was almost inaudible in the forest, even his steps sounded louder when he started to follow the other. "How am I supposed to adapt– Shit this is too much. How am I supposed to deal with everything?"

"I'm not inside your head, I can’t give you the right answer. But I can tell you what helped me," Seonghwa slowed down his pace so the other could reach him, his gaze fixed in the forest in front of him. "find something you would die for and live for it."

After some seconds they were finally walking side to side, something weird since San made sure he was some steps behind the blond until then.

"It doesn’t matter if it’s out of love or spite. Maybe both of them," He laughed. "but make sure it will keep you sane."

Something he would die for.

Something he would  _ live  _ for.

Was there anything like that? Could San really find something so important in a life as a pirate? 

It didn’t sound easy.

"Or, well, if it sounds weird– You can always ask Wooyoung." The lieutenant’s seriousness vanished then. "He's been a pirate all his life, he's more useful than it seems."

“He– He does look useful.” San laughed a bit, internally cheering the tension breaking joke. “He really looks like a pirate, like– Except for the silver hair, that’s weird.”

“Oh, it is right?” The blond laughed too, happy to see the other was calmer than moments before. Seonghwa didn’t feel like he really helped the church boy, but at least he gave him a path to follow. It was better than nothing. “The first time I met him I thought he was… You know, not human.”

“I mean, humans don’t have silver hair.”

“But it turns out he _ is _ human. He’s just a guy with weird hair and a cool matching jacket.”

The last part wasn’t necessary. It was a simple detail Seonghwa decided to let out, a small hint of what he wanted to ask next. But the idiot by his side didn’t notice, he just laughed and looked at the beautiful scene around him. Was he purposely ignoring him? Was San just avoiding an uncomfortable question?

Not today, honey.

“And speaking about the cool jacket–” He let out a fake cough, making sure to attract the church boy’s attention. “Why are you wearing it?”

“Ah?”

San’s eyes opened wide as he moved his attention from the forest to his lieutenant. He was happily enjoying the pretty flowers and giant crystals, the weird plants and trees from the place. But the other had to ask what San saw as a simple, kind gesture.

“Oh, he said I’d catch a cold or something and he– You know, he gave it to me.” He hugged himself a bit then. “Like, I have to give it back, of course. But still nice.”

“He– He really did?” The blond even stopped walking, more than surprised. Even amazed. Wooyoung really liked his jacket, Wooyoung  _ loved _ his jacket. Seonghwa himself almost cried the first day the other offered it to him. 

And he just gave it to the church boy, who joined the crew not so long ago.

It fucking gave it to him. What the literal fuck.

Was he perhaps… flirting?

Did Wooyoung  _ flirt _ with the church boy from all the crew?

“Is it– Is it something bad?” San said, getting more and more nervous. Oh god he readed a lot of stories about it, like the small gestures that were basically death sentences. Like the kiss of death, those things.  _ The jacket of death _ . “Oh gods I’m going to die–”

“What?” Seonghwa was confused, as expected from the other’s idiotness. “What the hell, no. He’s– I think he’s trying to be nice, but it’s weird.” He tousled his own hair a bit. “I mean, it’s not weird that he tries to be nice, he’s nice. Only a bit loud and dumb, but–”

He stopped speaking as soon as he saw San’s expression. He was processing that he wasn’t going to die, so he didn’t pay much attention to the lieutenant’s nonsense. The blond put a hand on his shoulder and looked right into his eyes.

“It’s fine. You’re not going to die, it’s just weird that he lends his jacket to others.”

“Then– Then why did he–” He muttered, much more relaxed. But it didn’t last long, San just remembered  _ the other kind _ of stories about pirates he readed. Not in the church, of course. Oh hell they would’ve kicked him out way sooner if they found out. “Oh.”

Oh.

That was all he said while his face turned right red, something Seonghwa noticed at the moment. It looked like he was about to explode.

“San. Sani, sweetie. Dear.” Seonghwa muttered. “Stop thinking about what you’re thinking.”

“Does he– Is he trying to–”

“He’s– I don’t think that’s it,” He said, like a liar. “Wooyoung just wants you to feel welcome, understood?”

“Are you sure…?”

“Yeah, are you sure?” A third voice suddenly joined the conversation.

Oh shit.

Both pirates freezed. After some seconds they started to slowly turn around to look at the stranger, hoping it wouldn’t be an enemy. There was a boy standing some steps behind them, in the middle of the path they were following. For how long had he been there? Was he following them?

How didn’t they notice until he spoke? They could already be dead if the other really was a menace.

The boy did look like a menace, tho. His hair was dark red and combed back, his eyes dark and unsettling, but the worst thing was a weird mark on his face. It was pure black, and if you stared at it for too long it seemed to move.

Gods he was giving them the creeps.

“Come on, don’t leave me like this! I wanna know what the blondie thinks about the jacket thing!” He said like he was unable to read the atmosphere. “Does he wanna bang him–”

“Who are you?” Seonghwa finally spoke, taking one hand to his dear sword and pointing at the stranger with it. “Were you following us?”

“Woah, woah. Chill dude.” He raised his hands, staring at the weapon like it meant nothing to him. “I’m just a bystander, I live here.”

“You live in Bright Lily?”

“What? No. I said I live here, we are not in Bright Lily yet.”

“You live… in the woods?”

“You got it.”

“Why would you?”

“Hey, I’m not here to judge your lifestyle. Don’t judge mine.”

Even if they were just talking, San could easily feel the menacing vibes around the lieutenant. He was still considering if the other was an enemy or not, if he had to kill him or let him go. And that meant he was focused on his face, his strange features and gestures.

But San had the chance to look at something else. He made the mistake of looking into the crystals around them.

It didn’t match.

The reflection of the guy didn’t match what he was doing, just like it had its own life. His reflection was the same boy, he had the same features and black marks on his face, but he just felt different. His hair was tousled and almost covering his eyes, his gaze much more friendly and warm.

It was like there were two of them.

_ Two of them _ .

_ The human and the spirit _ . And Lieutenant Park Seonghwa was threatening the fucking spirit.

* * *

“Why are you so worried about them?” Wooyoung said.

“They are dangerous soldiers, mister not giving a shit.” Mingi replied.

“Hey! I do give a shit, I just don’t think they will escape!” 

The two pirates were on their first rest together, something they actually didn’t plan to do. But Mingi forgot to eat and the boatswain ordered him to do it, so they ended up eating together in the deck. ‘You need fresh air’ the silver haired said, ‘You can’t work well with an empty stomach’.

He was right, but he could at least keep an eye on the prisoners while he was eating.

“If the Specialist gets out it’s your fault, I hope you know it.”

“He’s an unarmed guy inside an iron jail. What will he do? Eat the bars like a rat?”

Mingi took a few seconds, thinking about an answer to tell the other he was wrong. He couldn’t think about anything convincing, so he just took a bite of his food and went silent.

Wooyoung smiled after his triumphant victory, eating his food too. Really, what was the other thinking about? He respected the jailed soldier, Soonyoung didn’t sound like a liar and the stories he mentioned were terrorific. But he said them so casually it sounded so easy. He fought pirates, bandits, non humans… Even monsters. Like, real huge monsters.

What kind of guy can do those things on his own? 

No, he probably wasn’t alone. He was a specialist, he had a team. Ateez could do it too as a team for sure.

But what if he really was that strong? What if he was as terrorific as Yunho made it sound like? 

Wooyoung. Stop. He had to stop.

He had to stay calm and make sure Mingi was okay, eating well and recovering from his wounds. They were alone, the captain and the lieutenant were doing some errands on the island. It was his duty to take care of the crew until they were back.

And he was doing good, everything was going well. They just had to survive the boredom of waiting in the Aurora while the others had fun.

That was what Wooyoung thought until an ugly noise came out of the ship’s cellar, the sound of iron colliding with the wooden walls of the Aurora’s guts.

Mingi raised his eyes to match the other’s gaze, clearly worried. Maybe a bit angry.

“The rat ate the bars.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oooh, a mysterious guy in the woods, who could it be
> 
> Hope you enjoyed the chapter fam, see you next week!


	6. Chapter 6

Jongho never thought black and red flowers could make such a pretty environment, really. The youngest of the crew found himself surrounded by pure wood buildings and exotic plants, the town and nature perfectly intertwined with each other.

Small shops and market stalls created incredible fragrances and, honestly, were making him hungry.

The town's name was Ellond. The captain guided them there, and while him and Yeosang were talking, Jongho decided to stay some steps back to talk to himself a bit.

The second story started there.

The thing Jongho noticed the most wasn’t the architecture or the food, actually. It was the people. All kinds of people walked around him, a lot of them showing clear traits of being non-humans.

They had different reactions to strangers, of course. Yeosang was more than welcome and well seen, the prince was one of them and having an amazing time in the place. It was probably what the captain wanted.

Hongjoong, on the other side, was getting some dirty looks. He understood and ignored it, conscious that the town was home to people most humans wanted dead.

But the thing was, Jongho was feeling those judgemental gazes on him too.

Non-humans didn’t consider him one of them, but the red tie on his arm reminded him he wasn’t human either. Jongho felt trapped between both words, he didn’t belong to any of them. He didn’t even know what he was or what those scales meant, gods.

Did he have any clues to follow? Not much, really. The scales extended through his arm when he used all his strength, it always happened.

It also happened on his back, the scales appeared to help him heal his wounds. Now that was weird. He felt like something in the arrows made him react, but he checked and they were absolutely common ones.

Perhaps it wasn't about the arrows, but about the archer.

It had to be a soldier, of course, but which kind of soldier? He didn’t know a lot about the weird guys from the army, the only unit he knew well were the Monster Killers. He loved those guys.

A team of soldiers who faced giant beasts, monsters and creatures, they were so cool. But there was no archer, and Jongho was no giant monster.

So he had nothing.

Maybe Yunho would know something. The blacksmith didn’t really trust the soldier, but he was the obvious answer to his questions. Perhaps he would have a talk with him when they went back to the Aurora.

Ah yes, nothing like a sweet talk with the dumbass soldier who got him in a pirate ship, that sounded like an amazing plan.

The murmur of his thoughts managed to eclipse the people talking around him, even his crewmates voices disappeared from his mind. Just just his own voice and a hurricane of ideas, memories, questions. A mistake, actually. If he were paying attention he would have noticed that the Hongjoong and Yeosang stopped his steps, Jongho would have avoided colliding with the captain’s tiny body. The blacksmith let out a soft ‘oof’, then his mind went back to reality and his surroundings. Why did they stop? Did they find what they came looking for?

Jongho fastly checked his surroundings, nothing caught his attention. He stared at the others then.

They were looking at him, clearly concerned.

“Are you okay?” The captain finally spoke. “You seem a bit distracted.”

“Uh, yeah?” He lied. He didn't want to worry the others, honestly. Jongho was just a bit confused, but he’d been like that since the scales showed for the first time. He was just overwhelmed with everything happening around him. Right? “I’m just admiring the place, it’s pretty. The architecture is cool.”

“You have been ignoring us for a while, just for the architecture?”

“I mean–” Yeosang shrugged, looking askance at the captain. “He has a point. I’m used to Ethia’s fancy building, this place is simple but impressive.”

“I’m the first one who loves Ellond,” The captain rubbed his eyes a bit with one hand. “but that’s not the point.”

He went silent for a moment to look at his crew, at the part of it that accompanied him. Yeosang seemed to be absolutely distracted by the architecture, the smith’s obvious lie worked perfectly on him. And Jongho seemed so proud of his victory.

“Jongho,” Hongjoong kept talking, putting one hand in the youngest’s shoulder. “Are you really okay? You didn’t even say any pun since we’re here. If there’s anything I can do to help, please tell me.”

He was about to joke, to lie again, but Hongjoong’s gaze was fixed on his. The captain’s eyes expressed pure honesty, like a father worried ‘cause his son came back sad from school. At least Jongho imagined that’s how it might feel, since he knew either his dar or the school.

“It’s fine.” He finally replied, his voice soft and his mouth pouting. “I’m tired, captain. I’ll be better when– Ya’ know, when this job is done and I get some rest.”

Hongjoong knew well there was more, but who was he to make Jongho tell him? There sure was a bug in the blacksmith’s mind but he decided to fix it on his own. Respectable decision.

“Fine,” Joong sighed and then took a fast look around him, trying to remember which direction they were following. “Stay with us, will you?”

“We can talk about the architecture if you want.” The prince nodded a bit. “But you’ll have to wait until we choose our next stop.”

The three of them started to walk again, all together then.

“Our next stop? Weren’t we going to choose depending on what we find here?”

“Uh, yeah.” The captain laughed a bit.

“We are talking about or next stop for morally questionable business.” The prince explained.

“Wha–” Hongjoong’s laugh grew louder. “I guess that’s a way to say it.”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to directly say the matter out loud. We are surrounded by pure, innocent civilians.”

“No offense, Yeo” Jongho’s voice sounded as usual again, confident and calm. “but you’re making it sound worse. I could scream that we– I don’t know, we’re gonna overthrow the government in a bloodbath and it would sound better than  _ morally questionable business _ .”

“Hm." Yeosang's calm voice matched his face, his expression of almost indiscernible surprise. "I'm not used to the pirate jargon yet, it would be amazing if you could guide me. "

"I don't think it’s a pirate thing, huh? Only rich weird dudes talk like that." Jongho chuckled once more, putting one arm around Yeosang’s shoulders.

"Well, I was rich. And it seems like I'm weird."

"Honestly, I heard you curse more since I met you than I heard Seonghwa during all my life." Hongjoong added, looking at the two boys. "I don't think it’s about your rich boy manners."

Yeosang was shy and calm, not the best one in terms of physical touch. But he seemed comfortable with Jongho around him, who actually wasn’t a fan of it either.

Seeing them together like that… It reassured him to see they found a friend in each other. Both of them left all they knew behind, Hongjoong was conscious of how scary that was. He luckily had Seonghwa by his side when he threw himself to the sea. And it was ‘cause they wanted to, not kidnapped or forced to leave home. 

He was also worried about San, but that was why he sended him to Bright Lily with the lieutenant. The blond would know what to say, what to do. At least Hongjoong hoped so.

The captain kept walking alongside the other two boys, letting them talk and joke about every single shit they saw, letting the boys be boys for a while. They managed to take Jongho out of his thoughts for a while, that was good.

They walked through the town following the captain’s guide, only to be interrupted before reaching their destination.

“Hey, you! The human cutie!”

A woman shouted to them, making both Yeo and Jongho look at Hongjoong. He was a human. He was tiny. It had to be about him.

The captain looked around until he saw the lady waving at him, a woman who could be double their age smiled at the boys from the entrance of a discrete but pretty bar. She didn’t look like a bad person, and Joong doubted she was flirting. A single gesture from him was enough to make his crew follow his steps and approach her.

“Yeah?” The captain said when he was close enough.

But the lady’s gaze fastly moved from him to the youngest of the group.

“You guys seem strong, I could really use some help right now!”

* * *

Empty. The jail of the Aurora was empty, both prisoners escaped and both pirates failed. Wooyoung was the first one to arrive and see the disaster; they didn’t break the jail, they just dislodged the iron door. The question was how, how did two unarmed soldiers manage to escape? It didn’t make any sense, not even the master of escapism of Ateez could do that shit. Mingi made sure to let Wooyoung know. Multiple times.

The silver haired couldn’t even think straight.

“We have to find them before the captain comes back. They have to be on the ship.” Wooyoung finally ordered. No one came out of the Aurora’s guts and they made sure no one would unless they wanted to, but the soldiers were somewhere around them. They could hide, attack, perhaps find some weapons. “We will fix the problem before Hongjoong finds out.”

“Aye sir.” Mingi instantly replied. He would love to blame the problem on Wooyoung, but the silver haired was his superior and the situation was serious. It would have to wait. "The locked hatch will take time to be open again, and it will make some ugly noise."

"Which means they are still here." The boatswain finished the sentence. "Let's do this fast."

Mingi nodded, ready to move. But then

"And Mingi," Wooyoung spoke once more, looking at his crewmate while taking the feared whip on his hands. "if I'm the one who finds your friend I won’t be… gentle. Hurry up and find him first."

* * *

The lady who asked them for help turned out to be the owner of a pretty good tavern. Not the best one, but it was clean, comfortable and the drinks and food were good. She offered them a free meal if Jongho helped her fix the roof, it seemed like an unexpected and strong wind made some leaks appear in the place.

And honestly, a free meal was something they couldn't deny.

The blacksmith was still working with her out there while Hongjoong and Yeosang had a drink; Jongho insisted that he was enough to fix the problem.

They were on the bar counter, the captain drinking a glass of rum while the prince asked for juice. Cute, Joong thought. The man behind the counter was a young lady, probably the owner's daughter. She was pretty, pure plack hair collected in a ponytail, letting the pirates see some gills on her neck. A mermaid, probably but none of them really asked. It was not their business, and they sure had a lot to talk about.

"We must find The End of The Abyss." Hongjoong said, taking a long gulp of his drink after it.

"Sounds pretty inviting." Yeosang laughed a bit.

"They'll have some answers for you. For both of you." The captain stared at the glass in his hand for a moment. It was going down too fast, and he didn't want to take too much profit from Jongho's work. He would have to slow down. "The owner of the place knows about everything, we have to try."

"If they know about everything, perhaps they know about the Specialists."

Yeosang’s words were discreet and soft, perfectly calculated so only his dear captain could hear it. But he obviously failed, the lady in front of them stopped what she was doing as soon as he heard the magical word.

She didn’t look worried or suspicious, that was good. Soldiers were also their enemies, the prince thought.

Once again, wrong.

"The Specialists?" She said, serving Hongjoong a second glass of rum he didn’t ask for. She seemed quite interested in the matter. "You want to know about them?"

"Uh…" Yeosang didn’t know well if he should speak about it, but as soon as he looked at his captain he understood he was too busy enjoying his free drink. "Yes. We are– Curious. They seem like very peculiar soldiers."

"Oh, they sure don't act like soldiers–" The lady laughed a bit. "But we owe them everything, you know? The Specialists saved us."

"What–" Joong almost choked on hearing it. "Isn't the White Army your enemy? Not to sound rude, but they–"

"I know. We all know." She took a fast look at the people in the tavern, her gaze falling for some long seconds in a group of people. Boys about their age enjoyed a good time playing some dumb improvised games. "This place– Not just Ellond. It was controlled by some scum not so long ago. A criminal band that trafficked with non humans."

She stared at Yeosang for a moment, then at his dring. The prince shaked his head, rejecting a second delicious juice.

"They were strong and menacing, they took our loved ones and there was nothing we could do. But then the Specialists appeared." A fond smile appeared on her face then. "They put an end to our nightmare, and most of the victims came out perfectly safe."

" _ Most _ ?" The prince asked, but instantly regretted it. What if it was her father or a loved one who didn't make it.

"There was a boy– No one remembers his name, he didn’t have any family. But he was nice and so cute, I remember that."

"Oh no. Did he–"

"What? No, no. He's alive." But the lady didn’t sound too happy about it. "They experimented on him, let the masked spirits take his body. Gods I– I can't even imagine the pain he's gone through."

Silence. None of the boys expected it, none of them knew how to react.

"He's incredibly unstable now, his mind is shattered. It seems like even himself noticed, he lives in the woods now. It's–" Then she laughed a bit, a truly sad melody if you asked. "People started calling him  _ the crazy guy of the woods _ , but with time it shortened to  _ Woodz.  _ He doesn’t seem to remember his own name either, ain't it sad…?"

"So this is what the masked spirits can do." Hongjoong muttered, his voice almost broken by the lady’s story. "For the gods…"

"But this is only a part of the story." Her mood suddenly brightened up, her gaze falling on one of the young men who were on the corner. He was approaching them, probably ready to order more drinks. "If you are curious, you can ask an actual Specialist!"

What.

_ What. _

Then both pirates stared at the boy. He wasn't wearing the army uniform, but he was wearing those peculiar thigh high boots every soldier had. Oh fuck.

The captain instantly got up, pretending to remember something.

"You and Jongho get the job done, I'll go warn Mingi and Wooyoung." He whispered, making sure no one would hear it. 

No one except for Yeosang, who discreetly nodded in return.

The captain just dropped some casual goodbyes before leaving Yeosang alone with the lady and that guy. He was cute– Cute but visibly strong. One wouldn't notice without really paying attention, but he was clearly trained to fight. And it was Yeosang’s turn to avoid said fight.

But that wasn’t the important part of the story.

The captain didn't bother to find Jongho and explain to him what happened, that would be the prince's job. Hongjoong just started to walk, faster and faster as seconds passed, only to start running as soon as he was in the town's exit.

Those guys were dangerous and they could be in the Aurora, they could be killing his crew.

Hongjoong didn’t know he could run  _ that _ fast through a forest, but he sure as hell was doing it. At least until something interrupted. He stopped his steps after almost crashing against a bunch of logs, trees destroyed without any intention of making it clean.

"What the– Who the fuck–" He started to fuss, ready to move around and keep running. But then another voice made him freeze.

"I really needed to make you stop– Gods I was expecting you to fall at some point."

Oh no. The voice was completely new to Joong and the guy implied he followed him all the way through the woods. And at some point he was faster enough to fucking cut some trees. What kind of monster was behind him?

The captain finally turned around, and what we found was just slightly different from what he expected.

He was tiny. Shorter than Hongjoong. The guy was short but clearly strong, even through his uniform Joong could notice the strong arms making the fabric struggle. The Specialist had brown hair and pale skin, but the most important thing was his weapon.

On his back he carried an axe that could easily double his size.

And he followed Hongjoong carrying it.

He didn’t have much more information, but just seeing the other confirmed what Ateez feared.

The Specialists were fucking monsters.

"Now, shall we begin our little talk?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOAH WOAH WOAH
> 
> IT'S TIME FOR SOME ACTION
> 
> Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Be ready for what’s coming and see you in the next update! ;)


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